Outland Adventures

 Hey Y'all... I really don't know what to do here. We've had our share of slowdowns and set backs. (More on those in Thursday's video.) So I don't really know how far into March to plan, we're totally winging it folks! Tu 5th-  More Gadgets We Love  Th 7th- Working on the Van Some More. Finished? Tu 12th- Who are We, Amanda & Chris? Th 14th- Full Van Tour! Tu 19th- Our Best Van Life Tips, Tricks, Etc. Th 21st- More Things We Don't Like Tu 26th- Our Favorite Van Life Content Creators Th 28th- Where are We Going Next? If you have any blog/vlog ideas leave them in the comments below! Thanks, The Outlands

 Hey Y'all! We've been busy now that we finally have the money from the house sale, so I haven't really had time to blog the past few days. My apologies! We've paid off everything- some could be done online, others had to be in person, joined Planet Fitness, bought everything we needed for the van (plus a few extras)... Thursday we had an appointment to get the tires put on, and all that squared away- it took 2 hours. While we waited for that we walked around the nearby shopping center. Then we had some more banking to do, and stopped for lunch, then hit the gym. After that we had to stop by the UPS store for an Amazon return. Our emergency toilet was the wrong color, which would have been no big deal, but it also had a hole in the bag, so that should be exchanged in a few days. When we got back our main power source for the van had arrived. (We've been getting packages, mostly van parts, all week.)  ...Oh and we did an oil change too. Good thing the weather held ou...

 Hey Y'all! We've been full time at this van life thing for almost three weeks now, so long enough to form opinions that I'm sure will change over time (haha). We've come to love some aspects... others not so much. So here's our top 5, in both categories. Our Top 5 Greatest Things About Van Life: 1) Always having everything we need (or want) with us at all times.  If we want to change shoes for this hike, need a band-aid, need a drink, sunscreen, found a cool spot and want to take some pics- just pull out the camera. So simple. 2) The ability to go (almost) anywhere, anytime. We've hit up parks, and stayed for the day, because as we stated in reason #1 we've got everything we need with us, and the van makes getting in and out of most locations very easy. It's so simple to wake up, and hop in the drivers seat and go. 3) Seeing others out on the road, and having an instant acquaintance. Neither of us are big people persons, but we all have a social needs m...

 Hey Y'all! *Sorry this is so late, the "schedule blog" a u to post feature never works. I need to give up trying to use it. ...Well I gave a bit of it away in the previous blog when I mentioned the parts we needed to order: Parts- Spark Plugs, and Wires Shocks Springs Tires  Oil Change Brakes Belt (We will find the  squeak !) Intermediate Steering Shaft Also, we just  crossed 65,000mi on the van!! WooHoo! Now, back to van plans. Exterior/Mechanical- I feel like most of it is pretty obvious. A lot of routine  maintenan ce type stuff, like oil change, plugs , wires, etc. However, we have only ever had 4 tires for the van, and with the exception of the one we had to buy on our first major trip in Brunilda (in the middle of KY) they're all used tires, and we still don't have a spare. So 5 new tires are a must since were going a big bigger there. Chris has always said the steering was a bit loose, which makes it a little hard to handle, and so that was an...

 Hey Y'all! What makes OA Different? How do we stand out? 1) Outland Adventures is different because  we share our real life, in real time (within days vs weeks, or months). Like currently we're parked waiting on the home sale money, then we'll order parts* and be on the road full time. (Alabama bound!) *Parts: Spark Plugs, and Wires Shocks Tires  Oil Change Brakes Belt (We will find the squeak !) Intermediate Steering Shaft There's not a lot going on right now, other than prep and re-rearranging the van, so we haven't been as active on social media. We will share the parts upgrade process as soon as parts start arriving! 2) We don't edit our photos, and do minimal (if any) editing to our videos. We do this for two reasons. A) It takes less time/ resources, so we can get things up faster. B) We like to keep it real. This is what X location really looks like, this is how long XYZ took, etc. Real life is beautiful. We also feel like our followers/viewers/family/ ...

Hey Y'all! As you know from the previous blog, closing happened and we said goodbye to the house: https://outlandadventures.blogspot.com/2024/02/last-goodbye-to-house.html However we have to wait for the check to be cut, about a week- so not too bad... But that means all the van fixing plans are on hold until then. So what have we been doing? Enjoying the weather, rearranging the van, watching YouTube, reading, and cleaning. Doing all the things we can do for free in the van. Visiting local parks on days we have other errands to run as well. Nothing really "big" is happening...yet. How are we? Excited to begin this next chapter! Planning, and planning some more- van layout, trips, budgets, returns to TN, etc.  A bit bored, we really can't start traveling until the check clears, and we get the van squared away.  Other than that we're doing well. The van is more than comfortable enough and plenty warm on these past few nights when it's been in the upper 20s. The...

  Hey Y'all! So things actually turned out well, and closing happened yesterday (Monday the 5th). We finished moving out Saturday morning, and filmed our "Final Day" video: They had their final walk through early Sunday morning. We spent that time making more decisions on van layout... and moving things around yet again. Thankfully the weather has been beautiful and we've spent a good chunk of time cleaning and rearranging the "garage" as well as getting our makeshift window coverings cut and in place.  Monday we went for a walk at a park, killed some more time running a few errands, then at 3pm went to the closing on the house. That only took about an hour total, and was pretty uneventful. Just signing a million documents, and letting the buyers know a few last minute details. (Small details like trash day, the app for the thermostat, the main water shut off location, etc.)  After closing we returned to my Mom's where we're parked until we can get a...

  Hey, y'all! In this video, Chris replaced the fan motor on the cooler. It was a pretty simple job. I just needed a screwdriver and soldering tool and about 20 minutes. All in, we're at about $20 on this thrift store find. Now we just need to clean it up, and it's ready to go. If you'd like more detailed, or written instructions on How-To just leave a comment below. Thanks, The Outlands